Gay weddings in Alabama slated to start next week

Associated Press

MONTGOMERY, Ala.

A federal appeals court on Tuesday cleared the way for same-sex marriages to begin Monday in Alabama, but the state’s attorney general made a last-ditch attempt to keep the weddings on hold.

A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday refused to delay a district judge’s decision that overturned Alabama’s gay-marriage bans. That would appear to pave the way for Alabama to become the 37th state where gays can legally wed.

Attorney General Luther Strange asked the U.S. Supreme Court to halt the weddings until the justices settle the issue nationwide when they take up gay marriage later this year.